an Update from Campus Progress student Chris Hicks:

Wichita State University’s Campus Progress chapter held two successful and engaging events about student debt on April 16th with a “Student Debt Money Machine” and a panel entitled “Debt Hits Hard.”

At the money machine, students were encouraged to get inside of a glass case filled with fake money.  The air machine would kick on and while the fake money flew around the individual, they tried to gather as much as they could for 15 seconds.  After exiting the cash cube with fake money, it was added to an amount of “student debt”.  Each participant was given a blue Campus Progress nametag with “Hello, my student debt level is $______,” where they could write in how much student debt they accumulated in the money machine.

The second event, the “Debt Hits Hard” panel, was held in the evening with three speakers: Bill Shiebler, National Field Director of the United States Student Association; Lindsey McCluskey, Massachusetts Students Uniting; Pedro De La Torre III, the Advocacy Senior Associate from Campus Progress; and with moderator Tanya Paperny, Network Associate from Campus Progress.

Each speaker stressed the growing need for student debt relief with examples of Sallie Mae and other top companies that make extensive profits through private loans they offer to students.  Pedro De La Torre III presented several shocking facts about the rise of student debt, showing that the price of a college education has skyrocketed just over the past few decades.  Bill Shiebler outlined that while America likes to be the most competitive country in the world, we are one of the few that have invested heavily in education. In fact, because America does not invest in education like other countries, we are becoming less and less competitive intellectually and technologically.  Lindsey McCluskey highlighted that working with Administrators, Boards of Regents, and other decision-makers is how to Massachussetts group is working to make college affordable.

All three delivered animated speeches that encouraged students to speak out against problems with the monetary cost of education, with emphasis on how to make real changes on their own campus.  Finally, they informed the audience of the National Call-In Day that was held on April 21st where students could call in to their state representatives and senators to lobby for budget reconciliation in the first version of the Federal Budget to ensure that more money would go toward higher education and Pell grants.  And just a few days later, on April 29th, the Federal Budget passed in the House and Senate!

During his address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night, the President set a bold new goal for American parents and educators: by 2020 the US should again lead the world in the proportion of our population with a college degree. This week, Campus Progress was excited to see the Obama administration take the first steps toward the attainment of this goal by laying out a progressive funding plan for higher education in the 2010 budget.

The 2010 budget includes several higher education policies that will improve access and completion rates and reduce college costs while expanding, simplifying, and strengthening the programs that students rely on for grants and financial aid. Here are some of the major policy changes for Higher Education:

- Tying Pell Grant Funding to Inflation: Pell grants are currently funded through the annual budgeting process, which means that growth is unpredictable, and that it is often stagnant for years. This legislation would make Pell Grant funding mandatory, and tie future funding to a rate that is 1% above the Consumer Price Index.

- Making the Student Loan Program Reliable and Efficient: There are currently two federal systems used to distribute the same kinds of student loans: the “Direct Loan Program,” and what is nicknamed the “Guaranteed Loan Program” or FFELP. The new legislation would create all new federal student loans through the Direct Loan Program, which is much more cost-efficient and reliable for students and families. The administration estimates that a $5,000 loan made through the Direct Loan Program would cost taxpayers approximately $200 less over the life of the loan than the same loan made through the FFELP. By eliminating FFELP, we will be saving an estimated $24.3 billion which will be use to help fund need-based grant aid.

- Creating Federal-State Partnerships to Improve Access and Completion: This legislation will create a $2.5 billion fund for partnerships that aim to support students from under-served backgrounds, and improve completion rates at colleges and universities.

- Improving Education Tax Credits and the Perkins Loan Program: The American Opportunity Tax Credit was created as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (“the stimulus bill”), and offers a partially refundable $2,500 tax credit for tuition, books and other college-related expenses. This legislation would make it permanent. It also reforms the Perkins Loan program to provide more options to students facing gaps or emergencies, better target the program to those that need it most, and to reward schools that control costs and provide need-based aid. 

Campus Progress looks forward to working with the administration, Congress, partner organizations, and students to support these vital reforms.

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More Resources:

Read more about the education provisions in the budget here.

To learn more about why increasing America’s educational attainment rates should be national priority, please click here to read a new report from the Lumina Foundation.

Read Campus Progress' crib sheet that explains the differences between the Direct Loan Program and the Guaranteed Loan Program.

For more of the Center for American Progress' views on the future of higher education, please read this new article.

UPDATE: The Senate passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act 61 to 37. The bill will now enter conference committee to reconcile the House and the Senate versions of the bill. Final passage is expected early next week. 

There is some good news when it comes to student aid in the Senate’s version of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act – it looks like funding for Pell grants will not be cut out of the bill under a proposed “bipartisan compromise,” which means that they will probably be included in the final version of the Senate bill. This greatly increases the chances that Pell grant funding will be included in the final version of the bill that will hopefully pass both houses of Congress.

There is also some bad news – while Pell grants will probably not be cut, there may still be significant cuts to higher education. For example, the original version of the Senate bill included $3.5 million for campus modernization projects, but this provision would be completely eliminated from the bill if the bipartisan compromise is adopted. The version of the stimulus bill that passed the house included $6 billion for this purpose.

The compromise will also contain large cuts to policies that would help states facing large budget cuts to sustain critical public services to K-12 and higher education, and help to mitigate the effects of state budget cuts to education. The Congressional Budget Office has reported that these kinds of provisions help to stimulate the economy better than all forms of tax cuts, and have been identified as some of the more efficient ways to stimulate the economy.

The compromise also includes large cuts to other aspects of the bill, and these cuts have made the stimulus package less efficient at stimulating the economy. The Center for American Progress has estimated that the Senate’s version of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will create between 430,000 and 538,000 fewer jobs than the House of Representative’s version of the bill if this compromise is adopted. The House of Representative’s version of the bill included more aid to students and investment in higher education even before the recent cuts.

Campus Progress today joined several student, consumer, and higher education groups sending a letter to Congress to ask that economic stimulus legislation include short term assistance for students, who are facing significant trouble paying for college during the current recession.

So far, the only federal action to soften the blow of the recession on higher education has been to include providers of private student loans in the $700 billion dollar bailout. This action was counter productive, and will help few if any students while propping up high-risk, high-interest loans. You can read more about this here, or click here take action against the private loan bailout.

The letter sent to congress suggested four measures that Congress could include in the next stimulus package that would provide significant short term assistance for students, while investing in the most important asset for America’s economy in the years to come – human capital. Specifically, the groups asked Congress to:

Campus Progress Statement on the National Report Card on Higher Education

 
Washington, DC -- December 3, 2008 -- America has flunked on college affordability! That is the message sent by a report released earlier today by The National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education that grades states’ higher education systems by their affordability, participation, preparation, and completion. Every state in the US except California received an “F” when it came to college affordability. On average, college costs low and middle income families 25% to 55% of their family income after financial aid is considered.

This shocking reminder of America’s failure to invest in the next generation should spur students, families, colleges and policymakers into action. With the national dialogue focused almost exclusively on short-term measures to bailout certain sectors of our economy, Campus Progress believes that a strong case should be made for a significant, long-term investment in college access and affordability. An educated workforce is the backbone to any viable vision of working economy, but without a renewed commitment to college affordability America will continue to fall behind in the global market.

Bad news – despite letters from concerned taxpayers, students, and college affordability advocates, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson announced that he will be moving ahead with his proposal to spend part of the $700 billion dollar bailout to “save” providers of private student loans.

Campus Progress, along with the Project on Student Debt and many others, urged Secretary Paulson against this action, and asked the public to express their concern. We feel that this action is unnecessary, counter productive, and unfair. We should not spend taxpayer dollars to help CEO’s while students are denied the right to discharge their education loans in bankruptcy if they run into financial hardships.

Don’t throw up your arms and walk away - we need to demand that any government bailout for lenders making risky, high-cost loans is accompanied by common sense protections for borrowers.

Write to Secretary Paulson urging him not to sell out students while bailing out lenders.

Amid all of the debate on the $700 Billion bailout, the House of Representatives passed the Credit Cardholders’ Bill of Rights by a wide (312-112) margin. The bill represents one of the first times in many years that Congress has taken action on credit card debt and abusive practices within the industry, and passed despite strong opposition from both the White House and credit card companies. The Senate is not currently expected to take up the bill before the end of the legislative session, but Campus Progress will be joining consumer groups in calling on the Senate to find time to consider this important proposal.

The bill would, among other things, protect consumers from underhanded games that make it more likely that credit card payments would be considered late, require that credit card companies inform their customers at least 45 days before any interest rate increase takes effect, limit the ability of companies to increase interest rates retroactively, and prohibit certain kinds of predatory and “subprime” credit cards.

Check out how your representative voted!

Campus Progress has worked with partner organizations to advocate for strong protections for credit card borrowers, especially young people. We have testified before the House Financial Services Committee, issued action alerts to encourage young people to contact their representative, and signed onto letters to Congress with partner organizations.

We look forward to continue working with students, Congress, and partner organizations on this issue, and congratulate the House of Representatives for taking action on this issue.

Great news – we have heard from a very good source that the House of Representatives will be voting on the Credit Card Holders’ Bill of Rights sometime early next week! The credit card industry has been lobbying hard to kill this legislation behind the scenes, and so the support of strong consumer protections for borrowers by Campus Progress readers and activists have shown to Congress so far has been crucial.

We can’t stop now – we need to keep up the pressure until the minute that Congress votes. Check out the action alert below for more information, and to take action:

Tell Congress to Protect Credit Cardholders!

With the rising costs of college, gasoline, food, health care, and other expenses, credit cards are becoming the “safety net” for an entire generation. Unfortunately, credit card companies are using unfair and even predatory practices to increase their profits at the expense of the financially vulnerable or inexperienced. Luckily, the House Financial Services Committee has recently passed the Credit Cardholder’s Bill of Rights, which will create several important protections for borrowers, and the bill will be voted on by the full House of Representatives next week, so take action now!

Pressure is building to bring the Credit Card Holder’s Bill of Rights to the House floor. The bill would stop some of the worst abuses of the credit card industry (see below for more info). Consumer groups are working hard to make sure this legislation is considered, despite the opposition of the industry. They need your help, however, so take action:

Tell Congress to Protect Credit Cardholders!

With the rising costs of college, gasoline, food, health care, and other expenses, credit cards are becoming the "safety net" for an entire generation. Unfortunately, credit card companies are using unfair and even predatory practices to increase their profits at the expense of the financially vulnerable or inexperienced. Luckily, the House Financial Services Committee has recently passed the Credit Cardholder’s Bill of Rights, which will create several important protections for borrowers. We need your help to make sure that this issue is considered on the House floor before the end of this legislative cycle. 

Erica Williams, Policy and Advocacy Manager for Campus Progress, and Mark Savage, who was a Student Advisory Board member for the 2007-2008 school year, were featured on the Tavis Smiley Show on a segment about college affordability on August 8th. Check it out!

Click here if you want to get involved in Campus Progress’s efforts around College Affordability, or become a Student Representative for the 2008-2009 school year.

The Department of Education recently proposed policies that detail how it will implement the new Income Based Repayment (IBR) and Public Service Loan Forgiveness Programs created through the College Cost Reduction and Access Act last year. These programs will limit monthly payments to manageable percentage of a borrower’s income, and forgive student loans for borrowers who choose a career in public service (click here to learn more).

While most of what the Department of Education has proposed is good, the proposed policies include two unnecessary and costly obstacles for borrowers. Borrowers interested in Public Service Loan Forgiveness would be left in the dark for years on whether their jobs count as eligible public service, and in IBR, some married borrowers would have to pay twice as much on their monthly payments.

Let ED know that they should remove these obstacles – take action now!

Dont forget to check out our Action Alerts Page to make your voice heard on other issues that matter! 

Campus Progress’s Erica Williams, along with the PIRGs and several other organizations, testified at the House Financial Services committee today on credit cards and student debt.

You can read her testimony here, and watch the hearing here. 

As you have probably heard by now, the “credit crunch” has been making the student loan market less lucrative for many lenders, and has caused a bit of a controversy in the world of higher education.

To recap – lenders are trying to argue that problems in the credit markets will lead to a crisis for students who need loans to attend school, while most others think that the affects for most students will be small. Congress and the Education Department have created new policies to make sure that, no matter what happens, students will be able to access financial aid, but lenders, who already receive government subsidies to make loans to students, keep pushing to get a sweeter deal for their bottom line (as opposed to sweeter deals for students or taxpayers).

I thought this new article in the Chronicle of Higher Education might help point to the difference between planning for the worst (good), and unnecessarily wasting taxpayer money (not so good):

As you have probably heard, we are going through some rocky financial times. A “credit-crunch” fueled recession means that many financial institutions will have a harder time making ends meet, and this, of course, includes student loan companies, as the Washington Post points out today.

Higher education advocates are worried that these lenders are exaggerating the effects of the crisis on the student loan industry as a way to secure unneeded bailouts and get back some of the wasteful subsidies that Congress cut last year in order to increase student aid. They are also worried that all of the hype will mean debt-averse students may be discouraged from “investing” in a college education. Don’t worry – it is very unlikely that you won’t be able to get the loans you need to finance you education.

The Center for American Progress and Campus Progress are pleased with today’s passage by the House of Representatives of the College Opportunity and Affordability Act (H.R. 4137). This legislation continues to build on Congress’s commitment to making college more affordable and ensuring that Americans are prepared to compete in an increasingly knowledge-based economy. 

An amendment has been introduced that would give important protections to private student loan borrowers.

Since student loan companies lobbied their way into the Bankruptcy Bill in 2005, borrowers have been virtually unable to discharge private student loans through bankruptcy. Instead of treating these loans like credit cards or any other form of consumer debt, they are treated more like a criminal fine. This leaves borrowers few ways to deal with what are often high-cost loans if they run into financial troubles.

Later this week, the House of Representatives is taking up its version of the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act - the law that governs almost every federal program and policy towards higher education. We have a chance, if we act fast, to change this situation. Rep. Danny Davis proposed an amendment that would extend bankruptcy protections to private loan borrowers. 

Please urge your representative to support the Davis Amendment

According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, two students have plead guilty to charges of aggravated robbery, saying that they did it for tuition money.

Are loans really so horrible these days that robbery is a better option?

Also, I think that this speaks tremendously to the state of college tuition and the burden of student debt. The students both attended school for under $10,000 a year, but increases in costs were still so overwhelming that they held up a bank.

Both of them face up to 20 years in prison. 

Phoebe Connelly has a great piece up on TAP today about the politics of personal finance advisors like Suze Orman:

Orman, who has held certification since 1986, champions personal responsibility. She is quick to chastise women who call in to the show confessing that their husbands handle the bills, and she regularly admonishes folks to get a second job when faced with debt, telling a woman on a recent show, "We are not the victims of our circumstances; we are the creators."

But lately, Orman has been changing her stance:

This summer Orman also brought her concern to The Suze Orman Show, starting two shows with segments on students who had been caught in the web of high student debt. In a switch from her usual format, in which callers are offered a 15-minute Orman fix-it plan, she presented two students as case studies in the pitfalls of education loans. She talked to Adam on Aug. 18, and asked about the interest rate on his private loan. He answered that it was 9.5 percent. "Thank you!" shouted Orman, "Nine point five percent. Shame, shame, shame on you lenders. Look at what you are doing to the future of the United States of America." And then she really let loose: "But here is the problem. … We can't do anything about it, because our great legislators have allowed these private institutions to be protected against you claiming bankruptcy."

You should go and read the whole thing.

California students today filed an unprecedented ballot initiative with the Attorney General that would freeze tuition increases at University of California and California State University schools for five years, and to tie tuition increases to the price of inflation after the freeze expires.